With financial fault lines deepening across UK higher education, the Financial Sustainability in Higher Education Conference 2025 arrived at a critical moment. Hosted by HE Professional, the event gathered sector leaders, strategists and change agents to ask bold questions and challenge long-held assumptions about how universities operate and survive.
Shortly after the Conference, we caught up with Dr Rhiannon Birch, SUMS Principal Consultant, to explore what resonated most for her – and how these insights are shaping SUMS’ support for a smarter, more sustainable sector.
Rhiannon, what drew you to this conference?
Financial sustainability in higher education is one of the most complex, urgent challenges we face – a ‘wicked problem’ without a single solution. At SUMS, we’re helping universities reimagine how they work, through smarter use of data, AI and automation, better operating models, and transformational efficiencies. So, this event felt like a natural fit. It was a space to reflect, recharge, and realign – not just on where the sector is, but where it could go next.
Which speaker left the strongest impression?
Professor Adam Habib delivered a truly provocative call to action – one that dared the sector to do more than simply adjust its margins. He proposed a complete reimagining of the UK HE business model:
- rebalancing financial sustainability with a social mission
- collaborating with the Global South to deliver mutual value through transnational education (TNE) and online learning
- aligning domestic student fees with inflation
- paying the full economic cost of research
- and reinvesting in arts and humanities through renewed public subsidy.
It wasn’t just about fixing broken parts. It was about designing something new. And while Habib’s vision may be an unreachable Utopia, he demonstrated the mindset we need to make genuine progress.
What were the biggest concerns raised across the day?
Several — but three key threads stood out.
- The growth myth is catching up with us.
As Conference Chair Matthew Grigson outlined in his opening remarks, higher education has followed the script it was given – to expand. But that growth-led model has now run its course. Grigson highlighted the need for a fundamental shift: universities must develop more agile, scenario-based strategies that connect strategic planning, sensitivity analysis, and forecasting. His call to adopt a more adaptive mindset – using tools like the ‘Rumsfeld Matrix’ to navigate knowns, unknowns, and uncertainties – set a powerful tone for the day. - Leading through cost reduction is difficult, and dangerous if mishandled.
In a stark and honest reflection, Professor Sir Peter Mathieson explored the leadership challenges of delivering cost savings and severance schemes without eroding institutional culture. The message was clear: cutting costs is more than a technical process – it’s a values test. Leaders must bring courage, clarity, and compassion if they are to maintain morale and mission while navigating tough decisions. - Diversification is essential, but must be purposeful.
On the income side, Simon Taylor and Mehjabeen Patrick pointed to promising opportunities: the growth of London campuses, short courses and CPD, modular offerings for professionals, deeper industry partnerships, TNE, and unlocking value from specialist IP. Their advice echoed Mathieson’s: don’t chase trends – instead, build on institutional strengths, learn from best practice, and ensure diversification aligns with mission and strategy.
The event also offered early reflections on the Gillies Report, commissioned by the Scottish Funding Council and published just days earlier. Several speakers noted that its findings – though focused on Scotland – will resonate across the UK, offering both inspiration and warning signals for institutions grappling with sustainability particularly around the role of governance and audit in ensuring robust financial management and proactively looking for early indications of financial trouble as well as recognising that inherent underlying fragility in the sector also increases institutional vulnerability
Were there any innovative takes on delivering efficiencies?
Absolutely. What struck me most was the acknowledgement that efficiencies alone may not be enough.
The session on insolvency and market exit by Alex Jarman and David Baxendale was a stark reminder that our institutional toolkit is underdeveloped. In sectors like healthcare or local government, merger and exit processes are robust and well-tested. In HE? Not so much.
It reminded me that efficiencies must be pursued alongside resilience. Universities need early warning systems, dynamic scenario modelling, and courageous conversations about scale, mission and focus.
Any big moments around data, digital or shared services?
Several – and they map closely to SUMS’ sweet spot.
Matt Atkins, speaking in a personal capacity, shared smart ways to connect insight, forecasting and decision-making. The goal? A single, cohesive institutional view that empowers bold strategic choices. This idea of connected intelligence – data nuanced through discussion rather than for the sake of data – is central to how we help universities make data matter.
Dan Charman’s shared services case study was another standout. He reinforced that shared services aren’t just about cutting costs, they’re about freeing up capacity for value-adding work and enabling scale across functions.
How will this shape SUMS’ work moving forward?
From strategic diversification to operating model redesign, the ideas shared reflect what we’re already helping universities tackle. But this event sharpened our focus on key themes:
- digital sustainability starts with disciplined system choices
- efficiency is a leadership issue, not a spreadsheet issue
- income diversification must be values-led, not opportunistic
- scenario planning needs to be embedded, not episodic
- and transformation can’t wait – the sector needs it now.
As we support universities across the UK and beyond, our Efficiencies Campaign and Strategy and Transformation services are grounded in these realities, helping institutions do more with less without compromising on quality, equity or ambition.
Finally, one piece of advice for university leaders?
When it comes to digital transformation: adopt, don’t adapt. Allowing endless customisation of systems and processes undermines sustainability and slows change. Differentiation matters, but only in the right places. Build consistency where it counts. That’s where real efficiency – and agility – begins.
Why this matters now
The takeaway from this conference? Financial sustainability is not just a numbers game – it’s a strategy challenge, a design challenge, and above all, a leadership challenge. As universities stare down demographic shifts, intensifying competition, and systemic underfunding, the way forward requires collaboration, data-led decisions, and a fearless appetite for change.
At SUMS, we’re walking this road with you. Let’s build what’s next, together.
